Gaga: Five Foot Two

I love a good documentary. It’s a little window into someone’s personal life, reactions to the events in their life and if done right, you really end up empathizing with that individual.

I was really entertained by Gaga: Five Foot Two now on Netflix, but was it raw? Was it uncut? No. It felt very deliberate with its message – Why is Lady Gaga no longer Lady Gaga? Why is she not in her wild, insane wigs and outfits? Why is she toned down and why does her music sound different? It felt like she was trying to respond to the reaction to her new album and new look. Well, good for her. She has a voice and she can use it to let us know what she’s thinking. And she did.

Even though it was not unbridled and messy, I thought it still let us see her character at this stage in her life a bit more. I personally always felt like her antics and clothing seemed a bit distracting. Contrived. Entertaining for sure, but a bit put on if you ask me. Was her music better than it is now? I don’t know. She was young and not intimidated. That was refreshing.

The documentary shows her intention behind her latest album, her physical pain from a hip injury and her age. She’s 30-something and I think she was trying to convey that her choices and intentions are different than when she was in her 20s.

The lead up in the piece was her half time performance at the Super Bowl. She referred to it as the highest point in her career and in a beautiful ending, you see her feet literally rising off the ground.

I let my kids wander into the room to see what an entertainer really looks like without all the dazzle. They were shocked that it was Lady Gaga with her grandmother on the TV. We discussed what it was like to put on a show and what it was like to live a real life. It’s definitely worth a watch.

I have to say my very favorite part was the slowed down, dramatic piano performance of Bad Romance. At the end of the day, she is a trained pianist and singer and this is where her talent and longevity lie.